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Coins are utility object mostly produced by the state for the use of day-do-day transactions, long-distance trade and sometimes as gifts. Hence, numismatic has mainly been used for the study of economic, political and administrative histories. But numismatic can also be used for the reconstruction of the material culture of our glorious past. By a minute study of our ancient and medieval coinage, we can get an impression about contemporary religious and cultural sensibilities of various ethnic societies. By examining the religious epithets and figures of gods and goddesses and other non-anthropogenic signs present on the coins, one can judge the religious affiliation of the state or the king. This article will address the issue of religious symbolism on medieval Northeast Indian dynastic coins like those of Tripura, Koch Behar and Ahom kingdoms and will try to ventilate how these kingdoms used coins to advocate their religio-cultural affinity as well as to maintain their sovereign stature for quite a long period in their respective domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of coinage and economy of any area has its own appeal. As they are not much affected by outline influence, so they often proceed along their own lines and thus can have significance for people trying to determine the general patterns of development. In precolonial phase of Indian history, the Ahom kingdom situated in the North-Eastern part demands special attention as it had its own glorious series of coinage. As a royal issue, the coins of Ahom kingdom were the emblems of royalty and symbolic majesty of the Ahom kings. The metals, the motifs as well as other accompanying details on the coins depict the details of faiths and customs adopted by the Ahom kingdom. In this write up, we will discuss the origin, growth, importance in contemporary economy and many other aspects of the Ahom coinage in a comprehensive manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dengue is the most rapidly spreading arboviral disease in the world. Strain variations within the four dengue serotypes classify the virus into genetically distinct groups within serotypes called genotypes. Several studies have shown that disease outcome is associated with the genotype involved. Northeast Region of India comprises of 8 states and has witnessed several Dengue outbreaks in recent years. During 2015, a massive Dengue outbreak occurred in Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh, India reporting around 2000 cases. All four serotypes have been reported from this region but studies on the genotype of the virus is lacking. This study was undertaken with an objective to elucidate the genotype of Dengue virus circulating in Arunachal Pradesh during the outbreak. Methods&Materials: A total of 115 Dengue suspected samples were collected from Pasighat General Hospital, Arunachal Pradesh. Screening of Dengue NS1 antigen or Anti- Dengue IgM antibody was done dependinguponthe duration of sample collection and onset of symptom. IgG ELISA was done to determine whether the infection was primary or secondary. RT-PCR was performed using specific primers to amplify C-prM gene region. The obtained sequences were analyzed using BioEdit software and a phylogenetic tree was constructed in MEGA 6 software. Results: Total 50 samples were Dengue positive by either NS1 or IgM ELISA of which eight (16%) cases were due to secondary infection. Dengue virus RNA was detected in 28 samples. Serotype 1 was found to be predominant during the outbreak. Phylogenetic analysis of the obtained sequences using Maximum Likelihood method and Kimura-2 parameter model revealed that the circulating Dengue virus-1 during the outbreak belonged to Genotype III. Conclusion: This is the maiden report on genotyping of Dengue virus 1 from this region of India. Studies have shown that the emergence of newer dengue serotype/ genotype after a gap have always been associated with massive outbreaks; therefore it is necessary to carry out active surveillance to monitor Dengue virus epidemiology. Further study on pathogenecity of Dengue virus 1 as well as other serotypes circulating in this region is in scope of this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: West Nile virus (WNV) is a flavivirus transmitted by mosquitoes. The prevalence of WNV antibodies in Indian population has been known since 1952. Following phylogenetic analysis, Indian isolates were classified into Lineage 1 and 5. Since 2006, with the identification of WNV as an aetiology causing acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) in Northeast India, scattered cases have been recorded in Assam every year during the months of June to October. However, the mosquito species involved in transmission of WNV in this region requires detailed study. Methods & Materials: We analysed human sera from hospitalised AES cases and mosquitoes sampled in four West Nile reporting areas during June 2014 - June 2015. Mosquitoes were caught using suction tube and flash light. A total of 970 pools from 37246 mosquitoes were based on uniformity of species, collection site and date. Clinical samples were tested for presence of WNVspecific IgM antibodies and confirmed by neutralizing antibody test for the acute and convalescent phase serum specimen. Both clinical samples and mosquito pools were also tested for the presence of WNV RNA using NS1 gene specific primers. Results: Of the 222 AES acute case serum samples tested for the presence of WNV specific IgM antibodies, 48 were found positive. Six IgM positive samples demonstrated a fourfold rise in neutralizing antibody titre againstWNVin convalescent sera.WNVRNA was detected in the cerebrospinal fluid of one human sample. Vector incrimination showed 14 pools (4- Culex vishnui, 1- Culex pseudovishnui, 2- Culex tritaeniorhynchus, 2- Culex quinquefasciatus, 1- Culex whitmorei and 4 -Mansonia uniformis) to be positive for WNV RNA. Interestingly, 13 of the positive pools were collected during November- December 2014. Mosquito and human derived WNV sequence were similar to Indian Lineage 5 WNV isolates. Conclusion: Our results provide molecular evidence for the persistence and maintenance of Lineage 5WNVin Northeast India. This study confirms the role of Culex and Mansonia mosquito species in the transmission of WNV in Assam. Further studies are required to address WNV transmission and maintenance during winters for implementation of vector intervention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]